Incident Summary
An airplane sustained substantial damage during a forced landing after experiencing a loss of engine power while in cruise flight. The pilot, who was in command and seated in the left seat, reported that a pilot-rated passenger was handling radio communications and some flying duties.
Pilot Account
According to the pilot, he believes the passenger inadvertently moved the fuel selectors so that both engines were drawing fuel from the right main fuel tank. This likely occurred when the passenger attempted to switch from auxiliary fuel tanks back to the main tanks. Later in the flight, both engines stopped producing power. The pilot then switched fuel tanks and successfully restarted the left engine, but could not restart the right engine. He noted that during attempts to restart the right engine, the propeller was not placed in the feather position.
Landing and Damage
Unable to maintain altitude, the pilot chose to land on a gravel road. The road was narrow, and the left landing gear left the road surface, causing the airplane to veer off the left side and into a bean field. The pilot did not report any malfunction of the airplane or its systems.